


Don't Lie To Me

by evanderblake



Series: Egobang [1]
Category: Game Grumps, Starbomb
Genre: Anger, Angst, Anxiety, Comfort, Depression, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Polygrumps, ShipGrumps, arin loses it, comforting danny, low motivation, slight agoraphobic!dan?, upset arin, vent fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-26
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-24 04:42:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13803624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evanderblake/pseuds/evanderblake
Summary: Arin loses a very important project and has a breakdown. Dan is there to help.





	Don't Lie To Me

**Author's Note:**

> For my daughter, who just lost 800 words of a fic that she loved writing. 
> 
> I love you dear. Don't give up.

No.

It can’t be.

It can’t be gone. 

No.

Arin’s hands were in his hair, pulling almost too hard at the roots. His eyes stung as hot, angry tears formed, dripping down his cheeks. His face was warm, too warm, and he could feel his heart speeding up. 

What followed that moment… Arin was not particularly proud of. His computer, his very expensive laptop he had purchased for small animations projects, was tossed across the room in an almost cartoonish manner, and he heard the screen shatter although the computer was shut. His whole project, his animation for the new Starb/omb video, was completely gone. God knows why. But it was gone. 

He had been working on that project for days now. It was the only animation he was working on. And now, it was lost to the mists of time, along with his fancy laptop and all motivation to restart the project. He hated this. He hated himself.

Screams filled his small office, followed almost immediately by strangled sobs. He grabbed the collar of his t-shirt and yanked on it, tempted to tear the article of clothing off his torso. He didn’t. But his hands were back in his hair, clenched against his scalp as he screamed. 

From outside the office, it was hard to hear his outburst, but everyone heard it. The walls, while mostly soundproof, didn’t protect against Arin’s intense rage. Dan, who was seated at a desk writing some new music, was the first to notice, and in an instant, he was walking to the door and letting himself into the dimly lit room.

Arin was on the floor curled into a ball, his long hair covering his face, though Dan knew he was still crying. 

“Get out!!” Arin screamed, thrashing on the floor into a new, mangled position.

Dan did not get out. 

He dropped to his knees next to the man instead, brushing the hair out of his face to reveal an expression of utter devastation and rage. Their eyes met and, although Dan knew he was not responsible for whatever had happened, he felt almost hurt by the pure look of loathing he received. 

“Talk to me, big cat. What happened?” Dan asked in a low, soothing tone, still brushing stray hairs from Arin’s face. 

All anger drained from his eyes as he broke down in a new way, crying helplessly into Dan’s hand. Helping the man into his arms, Dan cradled his boyfriend against his chest, squeezing him tightly as they rode out the wave of sadness together. Out of the corner of his eye, Dan spotted the broken laptop thrown on the floor a few feet from him. He sighed, suddenly realizing what had happened.

“Your animation…” he mumbled, feeling pity on the broken man.

“It’s-s all g-gone, D-danny,” Arin stuttered through his sobs. “Ev-veryth-thing is g-gone!”

They squeezed together tighter in hopes that Dan could share some of his happiness with Arin. Dan shushed him, caressing his cheek and gently lifting his face to meet his eyes again. “Listen baby,” Dan started. “I know what it feels like to lose a project. I’ve lost notebooks full of lyrics and like, fuckin’ countless sheets of music. It sucks ass, right?” Arin nodded solemnly. “But listen to me, okay? You are gonna make it through this. Just like you’ve beat depression’s ass time and time again, you’re gonna start the video over and it’s gonna be even better than it was. Alright?”

Arin shook in Dan’s embrace. “B-but it was p-perfect. I c-couldn’t have done it an-ny better if I t-tried.”

Dan smirked as he ran his fingers through Arin’s blond streak, smoothing his soft hair. “That’s not true, dude. I know it’s not. I’ve seen you take projects that you fuckin’ loved working on and tear them to shreds. There’s always something you’re improving. So don’t lie to me. You’re kick this video’s ass. I promise.”

Arin nuzzled against Dan’s chest, the flow of tears slowing. “I… love you. A lot.”

Dan kissed the top of Arin’s head. “I know, baby. I love you too.”


End file.
